In the third round of the Superliga, another top team visits our home ground at the municipal stadium in Miercurea Ciuc: Rapid Bucharest is coming to town.

In the third round of the Superliga, another top team visits our home ground at the municipal stadium in Miercurea Ciuc: Rapid Bucharest is coming to town.

Due to the heatwave, the clash between FK Csíkszereda and Rapid in the third round of the Superliga regular season will kick off at the very late hour of 10:00 PM – pushed back by 30 minutes from the original 9:30 PM start time, which was already a summer heat-appropriate hour. While it's not exactly cool in Csík either these days, it’s nothing like the oven-like conditions in southern Romania. For match time, forecasts predict clear skies and a pleasant 21–22°C, much more suitable for football than the 38°C we experienced in Clinceni earlier this week.

This isn’t our first encounter with Rapid. After the club’s reorganization, the capital’s railway team also passed through Liga 2 on their way back to the top tier. In October 2019, during our first Liga 2 season, we beat them 1–0 at home. The return match wasn’t played due to COVID. The next season, in March 2021, we defeated them 3–1 in Buftea during the regular phase, but in the playoffs, they took all three points in Csík (0–1), and later won 2–0 in Mogoșoaia, their home ground at the time. That season, they promoted to the first division and have stayed there since.

Turning back to the current season, after the slip-up against Slobozia, Ilyés Róbert’s team focused on player recovery during the very limited time available. In the pre-match press conference, the head coach explained: “There are only three days between matches, which doesn’t allow for a full training cycle, or for separate strength and speed sessions, so we had to combine them.”

This game has special meaning for Ilyés Róbert, as he achieved the greatest successes of his playing career with Rapid and is still considered a legend by their supporters. “When I was a player, I never thought I’d one day coach against Rapid, but since becoming a coach, I’ve known this day would come – not just against Rapid, but also against other teams I once played for. Still, emotions must be put aside – what matters now is that I’m here at Csíkszereda, and that my players are ready to give their all in front of our fans, to deliver a match that helps us move on from that disgraceful defeat.”

Our midfielder, Veres Szilárd, emphasized: “What matters most is that we learn quickly from the mistakes of the last match, move past them mentally, and focus fully on the game against Rapid, because we know they’re a very tough opponent – one of Romania’s biggest clubs, with a squad full of quality players.” He believes the sell-out crowd will give the team strength to overcome the current rough patch. “The support of our fans is crucial – we’ll feel their presence, and it will give us extra motivation,” he added.

Szabó Bálint, who joined the team this summer, feels he has settled in well. “That second match didn’t go the way we wanted, but we’re trying to forget it quickly and focus only on Friday’s game. It will definitely be a tough match – we’re facing a strong opponent with good players – but they’re not unbeatable. We’ll give it our all and hope to keep the three points at home.”

As usual, the match will be broadcast live on Digisport 1 and Prima Sport 1.

Rédai Attila